Improvement in floatsng-docks



A. R. MCNA'IR.

Improvement in Floainvg-Docks.

No. 131,365. y Patented sep.w,1a72.

ANTOINE n. MoNnIn, on sT. LOUIS, MIssoUnI.

IMPROVEMENT iN FLOATEN'GGCKS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N 0. hgll, dated September17, 1872.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANTOINE REILHE Mc- NAIR, of St. Louis, in the countyof St. Louis and State of Missouri, have made a certain new and usefulImproved Marine Camel; and I do hereby declare that the following is afull and true description thereof, reference being had to theaccompanying drawing and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

The object of -this invention is to provide a means for submerging andraising marine camels with less expense of power and with greater easeand dispatch than heretofore 5 and to this end the invention consists ofa number of oats and valves arranged within the water compartments andchambers, operated by means of water and air pressure, as hereinaftermore fully set forth.

To enable those skilled in the art to make and use my said improvements,I will now more fully describe the same, referring to the accompanying-Figure l as a section al elevation through the line w of Fig. 2; to Fig.2 as a top or plan view with a portion of the deck or covering brokenaway to show the float and valve.

The frame of the cradle A consists of suitable timbers a al properlyscarfed and secured together, and arranged parallel on top of each othera proper distance apart to form waterpassages a2, as shown in Fig. l.Between said frame-work are vertical cross-timbers, near the ends, and.the whole securely fastened by screw-bolts in the most substantialmanner.

The bottom A is made of` stout plank, with a series of opened spaces, asa4, to allow water to enter, the ends and top being planked water-tight.At both sides of the cradle A are secured upright posts a5 (see Figs. land 2) to form the frame-work for the compartments B B1. Similarframe-work is made to form the compartments B2 B3 on top of the cradleA, contiguous to the side 'compartments B B1. All said frame-work isplanked air-tight on each side in the most substantial manner. Thecompartments B B1 and B2 B3 thus formed are further divided, by strongpartitions, into airtight chambers, and braced, strengthened, andotherwise constructed so as to render them capable of resisting theair-pressure. On top ofeach of the compartments B Bl are constructedother compartments, U C', the bottom f of the camel.

or floor c c of said compartments CO being formed air-tight so as tosustain the pressure of the compressed air necessary to expel the waterfrom the different compartments and chambers below the spaces G C. Thewater is allowed to enter and be expelled from each compartment) B B1 bymeans of the opened spaces a3 a4 formed for this purpose. To enter andexpel the water from the compartments B2 B 3 opened spaces b b areformed between the side planking of said compartments and the top orfloor of the cradle A, as indicated in Fig. 1. This permits the water toenter and be expelled from said compartments over the floor of thecradle A. E E are the main air-pipes, provided with distributing-pipes eel e2, which are provided with stop-cocks e3, and communicate with thecompartments. To the floor of the cradle A are secured stout timberfloorin gs FF to strengthen the dock, and tted to receive the keels ofvessels to be raised. In order to drive or move the boat or vessel to beraised so as to be placed in the proper place on the cradle A there arearranged upright frames G G1, properly secured to both sides Between'said frames there are pivoted, at f, adjusters f1. These are connectedat their ends by proper rope attachments f2, to be operated by suitableWindlasses G3.l

(See Figs. 1 and 2.) The operation of said adjusters is clearlyindicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1. By making the lighters in astructure with the camel the same is prevented from loss in case thepipes or cocks get out of order; `also, it will be noticed that by theconjoint operation of the several compartments a greater buoyancy isobtained, the whole forming a powerful, compact, and improved camel formarine purposes. Each compartment B Bl is provided with self-adjustingvalves and iioats, (which floats and valves, together with theirconnections, hereinafter described, constitute my invention,)constructed as follows: A water-chamber, H, of plate-iron, is formed inthe sides of said compartments, having a valveopening, h. Immediatelyabove said valve box or chamber is a float, H', closed on all sides,also of sheet metal, having the valve h1 properly constructed to iitperfectly thcseat of the valve-openin g h, as indicated in Figs. 1 and2. -The said float is guided by a rod, h2, passing through the bottom ofthe compartn ments B B1 in such Wise that said ioat is permitted to beraised or lowered by Water and atmospheric pressure. The said float His, moreover, guided in its vertical movement by slide-rods I I passingthrough bearings i il bolted to the sides of each oat. The valve propercan be further guided true to its seat by a vertical slide, i2, attachedthereto and passing through a cross-bar, 3, secured in the Water-chamberH. Any number of valves and floats are constructed, one above the otherin a) series, according to the capacity of the chamers.

The Water llin g the compartments, all the floats are raised, whichopens the valves. YBy atmospheric pressure, as soon as the Water getsbelour the floats, the valves are closed. Thus,

